


Of Hugs And Gay Puns

by Mercy_Rhyne



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: But it still is pretty gay, Gen, I love him, It can always be gayer, Lots of gay puns because I couldn't resist, also pretty cute, it could have been gayer tho, patton is a sweetheart, probably the fluffiest thing I have written in a while ngl
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-03
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2019-06-04 18:41:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15153266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mercy_Rhyne/pseuds/Mercy_Rhyne
Summary: Patton really wants to hug Virgil, but with his friend's touch-aversity, this isn't always that easy. But then, he comes up with a plan





	Of Hugs And Gay Puns

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings: Panic attack
> 
> This is based on a post from @randomslasher on Tumblr

Virgil was touch-averse. On some days it was more present than on others. Sometimes, he would sit next to Patton as they were watching a movie and cuddle up to him. He’d carefully rest his head on Roman’s shoulder or shyly hold Logan’s hand. But on other days, he’d shy away from the others, practically flinching away from any unwanted touch.

And the others respected his boundaries, they made sure to not make the anxious side uncomfortable by their touch. They did everything they could to make sure Virgil was comfortable around them.

Especially Patton. The moral trait _loved_ hugs, and of course, he couldn’t not hug his best friend. Every time when he wanted to hug Virgil, he asked, to make sure Virgil even _wanted_ to be hugged. And if he didn’t, that was okay. Patton respected that. He did not mind having to ask the same question every day. It was totally fine, but he had the feeling that there had to be a different way. An easier way to determine whether he could hug Virgil or not. Sometimes, Patton just wanted to surprise his best friend with a hug, without giving it away by asking for it. Sometimes, Patton could see Virgil needed a hug and he was scared of hurting Virgil, of doing the wrong thing, of upsetting him more. Surely, there had to be an easier way, right? There had to be some signal they could use, some code language.

 

And then, he had the perfect idea. He didn’t quite know where it came from; it just… _happened_. The paternal side went to Roman for help, knowing that the creative side would be more than willing to help him out with his idea.

With an excited smile, Patton knocked on the door to the prince’s room. He vaguely heard the tones of music, but before he could recognize the tune, it was paused and replaced by the sound of soft footsteps.

Then, the door creaked open, revealing the prince. Part of him, at least. The other part was concealed by the door. The creative side looked around with a slight frown.

“Patton!” Roman smiled as he noticed who was stood in front of his door; his frown immediately disappeared. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I have a… creating issue,” Patton responded. “And I thought you might be able to help.”

“But of course, Mister Tang,” the prince said, stepping back as he opened the door, allowing Patton to enter. The older side nodded as he stepped into the room. The enormous amount of posters and merchandise that the creative trait had managed to stuff into this room, never ceased to amaze Patton. Nearly every surface was covered in it; except for the desk Roman has pushed into the corner. This surface was littered with papers with sketches, outlines and drafts for scripts.

 

Roman strode over to the desk and pushed the papers aside, creating a space for him to draw or write if he so had to.

“Well, tell me all about this plan, dad,” he started, spinning around so he was facing the other side again. Patton had hardly moved in the few seconds this had taken Roman and he quickly approached his friend.

“Okay, well… you know how Virgil feels about being touched, right?” he asked, not waiting for the other side to respond. “Well, I thought we could make him a few bracelets that he can wear, depending on his mood, to… show how he feels that day. So we don’t have to ask him all the time, you know?”

Roman nodded, his hand blindly searching for a scrap of paper to write down the ideas that already started flooding his mind.

“Can we make them gay?”

“Of _queer_ -se we can, Ro!” Patton grinned at the creative prince’s request. “That is an a- _gay-_ zing plan!”

“Perfect!” Roman clapped his hands together. He finally gave up his futile search and decided to summon a piece of paper, instead of looking for them without finding anything. Then, the prince turned around to scribble a few notes on the sheet. He wrote down the different colours to use and for a while, the two sides debated what colour would bear what meaning.

After writing and crossing words out and writing them down again and changing everything up for the tenth time that day, the two sides had finally come up with a list they were satisfied with.

 

**_Red:_** _Please don’t touch me, I_ will _bite you_

**_Orange:_ ** _I’m okay with quick touches and maybe some hand holding, but that is all_

**_Yellow:_ ** _A quick hug is okay, but not too long, thank you very much_

**_Green:_ ** _Hugs are fine, you can hold it for a little while_

**_Light blue:_ ** _Please hug me and don’t ever let go_

**_Dark blue:_ ** _I don’t feel great, I’d like a bone crushing hug to make me feel better_

**_Purple:_ ** _I can hardly tolerate being in the same room as you right now, do not come near me_

 

“Now, for the creating,” Roman announced dramatically as he cracked his knuckles. Patton flinched back at the sound of this and the prince quickly apologised.

“It’s fine, my prince,” Patton reassured the other with a warm smile, “don’t worry about it.”

The creative royal smiled in return and nodded, accepting this answer as he focussed all of his energy on creating the seven bracelets. They had to be perfect, after all.

 

As Roman created the bracelets, Patton made a list with the meaning of the different bracelets. They had already made the list on one of the prince’s sheets of paper, but it was quick and rushed, and of course, this had to be perfect. Their rushed handwriting would not do. That’s why Patton had grabbed a few of Roman’s markers and started copying the notes in his most elegant handwriting. When he had finished, he drew a little heart next to each one of them, in the colour of the bracelet.

When the creative side had finished, he made a small wooden box to store the bracelets in. After that, he made three copies of the note Patton had made, so the other sides could keep one for themselves.

 

“There you go, Padre,” Roman announced with a grand gesture as he sat back in his chair, looking at the small box with a proud smile.

“It looks gr- no wait, it looks _gay_ -t,” Patton gushed, looking at the box fondly. The prince grinned at the pun as he moved to store the bracelets in the box, sticking one of the notes to the inside of the lid.

“There’s your present for Snow White,” he said, handing the box to the other side. “All done.”

“Thank you so much for your help, Roman,” Patton smiled, not taking his eyes off of the wooden box in his hands. “I really appreciate it.”

“Appreci- _gay_ -te,” Roman mumbled under his breath, looking up at Patton to see if he had noticed it. When he saw the parental trait grinning at him, the creative prince coughed and continued. “I- eh, it was nothing, Pat. Anything for you. Let me know what Virge thought of it, though?”

“Of course,” Patton promised with a nod. Then, he sank out of Roman’s room and entered Virgil’s.

“Virge?” As always, Virgil was found on his couch, listening to music. As soon as he noticed Patton, he looked up and paused his music, staring at the box with one eyebrow raised. Patton smiled as he took a few steps closer.

“What have you got there, dad?” the anxious side asked as his friend approached.

“Oh, nothing, kiddo,” Patton replied, sitting down next to the other, placing the box on his lap. “Just a little something Roman and I made for you!”

“What? You didn’t have to-”

“Ssh,” Patton interrupted with a smile. “Just accept it.”

He then handed the box to his friend and watched as the other took it. He had no idea how Virgil would react to this gift, but he was excited to find out. Virgil looked at Patton for just a few seconds before turning to the box and slowly opening it.   

 

He frowned a bit when he saw the bracelets, not understanding what this meant, but he quickly saw the note Patton had taped to the lid of the box. The anxious side tipped the box a little, so he could read it, and as he read the small messages Patton had written down, a smile appeared on his face.  

 

The moral trait beamed as he studied Virgil’s face. The other side read the notes on the page a second time before turning to his friend, a shy smile on his face.

“I thought this might be easier for you,” Patton declared before Virgil could speak up, “so you can just wear the bracelet that matches your mood that day. All of us have the same notes, so we’ll know if we can hug you or not.”

“That’s great, thank you so much.” Virgil’s voice was soft, but Patton knew his words were genuine. He knew his best friend enough to recognize the signs.

“No problem, Virge.”

“What’s the difference between red and purple, though?” the anxious side wondered, reading over the note again.

“Well, red means that we can at least still talk, or try to help you,” his friend explained. “Purple is basically telling us to stay far away from you because you need your personal space.”

Virgil nodded and looked down at the box again, his hands slowly reaching for the green bracelet. _Hugs are cool, you can hold it for a little while._ His eyes darted to Patton, who returned this gaze with a fond smile that could make the South Pole melt in an instant. It was so full of warmth and so loving, it made Virgil’s heart ache as he wondered how on Earth he deserved Patton as a best friend.

Carefully, still afraid to make his friend uncomfortable, the moral trait wrapped his arms around Virgil. With a content sigh, the younger side rested his head against Patton’s chest, closing his eyes as he heard the comforting beating of his friend’s heart. He could not understand how he deserved someone this considerate in his life, but he was glad he did.

 

In the days that passed, Patton was ecstatic to see how Virgil started wearing the bracelets around his wrist. It just felt so great to see his best friend wearing something he helped create. He loved it.

And not to mention: surprise hugs! If he saw something green or blue, and if he saw an opportunity, Patton would often try to sneak up on Virgil to surprise him with a hug.

The anxious side saw his best friend every single time, but he never let the other know. It made him happy to think he had managed to surprise the other side, and Virgil didn’t want to take that away from him. Seeing Patton so excited was enough for him. It was just too damn adorable.

 

A few weeks had passed, and the sides grew acquainted with the concept of the bracelets, the notes had slowly grown useless. All four of the sides now knew exactly what every bracelet meant. Virgil found out he really liked this system. It was easy, it was quick, and he didn’t have to be afraid of disappointing Patton when he had to tell his friend he didn’t feel like hugging that day. And too be fair, the bracelets gave out more meaning than he would ever give out anyone. He rarely felt like confessing he needed someone to hug him so tightly that the air was forced out of his lungs and his ribs nearly cracked. Now, he just had to wear a dark blue bracelet and wait for Patton to ambush him – or Roman, who was surprisingly good at these kinds of hugs. It was comfortable, in a strange way.

 

One day, Patton came into the common rooms, intending to make some dinner for the four light sides. They never really had dinner with the four of them, and Patton had decided that this fact was criminal. If they were a family, they had to act like one, he reasoned. But mostly, he just really, really wanted to cook for the others again, as it had been ages since he did this. They mostly just ate whenever they felt like it.

However, when the moral side appeared, he saw Virgil sitting on the couch, his arms wrapped around his knees, his face hidden.

“Hey there, kiddo,” Patton said softly, noticing the way Virgil was curled in on himself. He knew his best friend well enough to know that this was never a good sign. If Virgil felt like crap for any reason, he usually preferred the solitude of his room. But sometimes, the influence of that part of Thomas’ mind just got… too much for him. The sides had tried everything they could think of to provide Virgil with a place for himself, but nothing worked. Their influence was always around, and it affected the anxious side in negative ways. So, he started coming to the commons whenever his room started weighing down on him. Seeing him here, in a state like this, couldn’t possibly mean anything good.

Patton slowly walked closer, worry growing with every step. All he wanted at that moment, was to hold Virgil until everything would be okay again. However, when the moral side approached, he saw a line of red across Virgil’s wrist and he stopped as soon as he recognised the bracelet. “Oh, never mind that. Let me know if there’s anything I can do for you, okay?”

Patton turned around and he wanted to back up a little, to give Virgil just a little more personal space, but he was quickly stopped by his best friend’s soft voice.

 

“Wait.” His voice was trembling and unstable, breaking Patton’s heart. The moral trait froze and turned around, opening his mouth to ask Virgil what he wanted to say, but he quickly noticed that the other was now holding the red bracelet in his hand. The younger side kept his eyes on his shaking hands, refusing to meet Patton’s gaze as he reached for the pocket of his hoodie. The red bracelet disappeared, and it made place for the light blue one. _Please hug me and don’t ever let go_.

Then, Virgil finally looked up. His bloodshot eyes met Patton’s; his cheeks were puffy and red, his eyeshadow smudged. Without saying a word, Patton rushed forwards, making sure not to startle his friend too much as he did so. He sat down on the couch and Virgil immediately flung himself into Patton’s arms. The paternal side gently wrapped his arms around his best friend, rubbing comforting circles on his back.

“It’s okay, kiddo,” he whispered softly, as one of his hands slowly moved up to the back of Virgil’s head. “I’m here, sweetheart.”

 

Patton’s heart broke as he noticed how much Virgil was trembling. He had no idea what happened, but he didn’t care either. His best friend needed help and that was all that really mattered at that moment. So Patton held Virgil as he whispered calming words, helped the other focus his breathing and rubbed his back soothingly.

As soon as he felt his best friend’s arms wrapped around him, locking him in Patton’s safe embrace, Virgil crumbled. He had held everything back for too long. He had bottled everything up and it had been too long. The bottle shattered.

 

Neither of the two knew how long they sat there, but eventually, Virgil’s sobbing died away. Carefully, Patton kissed the top of Virgil’s head, the younger side still clinging onto his friend like he was his only hope for rescue. Softly, Patton started humming the first song to come to mind. A Whole New World.

He noticed how finally, Virgil started to relax a bit as he leaned against Patton. His breathing was still shallow, but it started to even out and with Patton’s help, Virgil managed to steady it a bit more. But even then, the two did not speak.

Sometimes, Patton would whisper some soft words of encouragement to his best friend, his fingers still combing through the other’s hair, but except for that, the room was silent. No one dared to interrupt it.

“Do you want to watch a movie?” Patton suggested after a while. Virgil just nodded in response and the moral trait summoned a few large blankets for him and his best friend. Dinner would just have to wait.


End file.
